Tuna macaroni salad is a classic dish and it can be made in 30 minutes or less. A creamy salad with protein packed tuna everyone loves.
If you love tuna salad you will love this recipe even more.
It’s more filing, just as fast to make and delicious. Tuna macaroni salad can be shared with everyone. It works great at BBQ’s, potlucks and anything where you can bring a recipe to wow family and friends.
You make this entire recipe in under 30 minutes. Simply cook the macaroni noodles and prep everything else while they cook.
Let’s dive in and I will show you how to make it!
How To Make Tuna Macaroni Salad
Do you have these ingredients to start
- Macaroni
- Tuna
- Sweet relish
- Egg
- Celery
- Mayonnaise
- Mustard
- Apple cider vinegar
- Salt & black pepper
Quick tip before starting
- Make the tuna macaroni salad while the noodles are still warm. They tend to soak the flavor up better that way.
- This is a great salad to make ahead. As it sits the flavors come together more. So making the night before is a great idea.
- In this recipe I used chunk tuna. I love the big pieces when serving but any tuna will do.
Making the macaroni salad
- First, make the macaroni per the instructions on the box. While the macaroni is cooking be sure to boil your eggs as well if you didn’t buy them already cooked.
- In a bowl make the dressing. Mix the mayo, mustard with black pepper and apple cider vinegar.
- Then, drain the tuna and mince the celery. When the boiled eggs are finish roughly chop those.
- In a large bowl, combine the macaroni with all the other ingredients then add in the sweet relish.
- Lastly, taste for salt you will need to add some in the macaroni salad. Serve immediately or later.
Storing the leftovers from the tuna macaroni salad
Surprisingly, this is one of the longer lasting salads due to the ingredients. You may be able to get as much as 5 days in the refrigerator depending on how fresh the ingredients were used. It’s not a salad to be frozen. Be sure to store the macaroni salad in a airtight container or at least seal the bowl well with plastic wrap.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What kind of tuna should I use?
Any tuna from a can in water if fine. In this recipe I used chunk because I like the big pieces but there is light where it’s shredded and can be mix in the salad better. Any tuna you choose you need to drain it.
Can tuna macaroni salad be made ahead?
It’s a perfect salad to make ahead because as it sits the macaroni absorbs the flavors of the dressing. Also, the dressing as it sits the flavors come together far better than when it’s freshly made.
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Tuna Macaroni Salad
Ingredients
Dressing
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon mustard
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Salad
- 1.5 cup macaroni, dry
- 3 can tuna (5oz-6oz cans)
- 1 cup sweet relish
- 5 egg, boiled
- 3 rib celery, minced
Instructions
- First, make the macaroni per the instructions on the box. While the macaroni is cooking be sure to boil your eggs as well if you didn't buy them already cooked.
- In a bowl make the dressing. Mix the mayo, mustard with black pepper and apple cider vinegar.
- Then, drain the tuna and mince the celery. When the boiled eggs are finish roughly chop those.
- In a large bowl, combine the macaroni with all the other ingredients then add in the sweet relish.
- Lastly, taste for salt you will need to add some in the macaroni salad. Serve immediately or later.